The Arrow of Gold

'The Arrow of Gold' is a novel by Joseph Conrad, best-remembered today for penning the book 'Heart of Darkness'. The story is set in Marseille in the 1870s during the Third Carlist War. The characters of the novel are supporters of the Spanish Pretender Carlos, Duke of Madrid. Curiously, the novel features a person referred to as «Lord X», whose activities as arms smuggler resemble those of the Carlist politician Tirso de Olazábal y Lardizábal, Count of Arbelaiz. The narrator of The Arrow of Gold has considerable involvement in the story and is unnamed. The principal theme is a love triangle which comprises the young narrator, Doña Rita and the Confederate veteran Captain Blunt (named for Simon F. Blunt).